"Huff... huff..."
Messy footsteps trampled the ground as Nekomata gasped for air, dashing blindly through the Hollow without stopping for a moment.
Clouds began to gather gradually in the sky, making the already dim night even gloomier.
Just like the day of Miguel's funeral.
"Damn it..."
Nekomata stopped in her tracks and punched the concrete wall of the ruins.
Her knuckles turned pale from the excessive force, and fresh blood seeped out from the abrasions.
Miguel wasn't a good person; she knew that, which was why she had left the Red Fang Gang.
But Miguel was her adoptive father; she remembered that, which was why she wanted to avenge him.
Yet, when she sobered up from the rage of revenge, what welled up from the bottom of her heart was a sense of powerlessness—the inability to do anything.
She couldn't turn a blind eye to Miguel's death, yet she also couldn't bring herself to be filled with hatred toward the so-called 'murderer.'
However, when she received Miguel's pendant from Geno, she snapped.
The existence of that pendant let her know that Miguel wasn't just the cruel leader of the Red Fang Gang he appeared to be; he still held her, his daughter, in his heart.
Past memories flooded her mind, and bits and pieces of the old days flashed through her brain like a revolving lantern.
And so, in that moment, Nekomata's emotions crushed her reason firmly underfoot, driving her to charge at Geno with the intent to kill.
But as the emotions faded, Nekomata once again felt the taste of loneliness.
Nekomata once thought the Red Fang Gang was her home, but she abandoned it.
Later, she thought she had found friends, but she ended up severing that friendship herself.
"In the end, I'm alone again."
She knew that Miguel's death was well-deserved.
She also knew that what Geno did wasn't wrong.
The mistake lay in the fact that she was Miguel's daughter.
"...Is it raining?"
As moisture slowly accumulated in the air, heavy rain began to fall from the sky.
Nekomata didn't hide. She just stood there, letting the downpour soak her into a drowned cat, as if this could wash away her loneliness and guilt.
Cats, as creatures, really are just that 'fickle and heartless.'
As the pitter-patter of rain smashed against her body, Nekomata looked up at the sky with lifeless eyes.
Where should she go from here?
However, she wouldn't need to struggle with that question for long.
"Hah~ Huff~ finally found you."
Just like Nekomata before him, Geno was currently gasping for breath.
He was truly baffled. He had clearly followed the traces in his vision all the way here, so how did he manage to get lost again?
"You... what are you doing here?"
Seeing that Geno had followed her, Nekomata subconsciously took half a step back.
"Doing what? Coming to find the little kitten who scratched someone and ran away, of course, to give her a sound spanking."
Geno put on an exaggeratedly fierce expression, but it carried absolutely no intimidation.
"What? Are you an idiot? Earlier... I tried to kill you!"
"You're the idiot. Who tries to kill someone without showing a shred of killing intent? Even the moves you used to attack me were aimed right at where I was blocking."
Geno had understood right then and there: this prickly little cat had no real thought of killing him at all. She simply wanted to vent.
Of course, that bite really did hurt.
"I... I did not! I just wanted to kill you!"
Nekomata retreated another two steps. Even now, she was still conflicted, able only to maintain her toughness through stubborn sophistry.
"Save it. You might fool others with that talk, but you're a little too green to fool me."
Geno shrugged. This little cat really was tsundere.
Don't forget, he possessed the ability to read minds. Although it only worked intermittently, simply judging whether the other party was lying was still doable.
So, he continued to press forward two steps, cornering Nekomata into a dead angle against the wall.
"You... don't come over."
Panic-stricken, Nekomata subconsciously tried to pull out her short blades to block him, but she had forgotten that her twin blades had long since snapped. Where was the threat?
"Alright, no more jokes. It's very dangerous here. Leave with me, quickly."
Geno's expression suddenly jolted, as if he had sensed something. He immediately changed his tone and attempted to grab Nekomata's arm to take her away.
"No! I won't go with you! Let go of me!"
Nekomata panicked. She hadn't thought clearly about how to face this person yet; right now, her mind was set only on escaping.
She completely failed to notice that Geno's expression had turned ugly.
"Be obedient. If we don't go now, it'll be too late."
As if to verify Geno's words, a bright light flashed across the sky, followed closely by the rumbling of thunder, creating a terrifying atmosphere.
At this moment, Nekomata seemed to sense something as well. She felt as if she were being watched by something dreadful, and the fur on her body stood on end.
Geno naturally noticed it too. His expression was now extremely grim, staring dead at a certain direction.
"Is it too late? Quick, Nekomata, run. As far as you can."
As soon as his voice fell, the existence that gave them both an intense sense of crisis finally revealed its figure. Under the cover of the heavy rain and the pitch-black night curtain, it appeared mysterious and dangerous.
Crack~
Another flash of lightning illuminated this guy's true face. It was a giant Ethereal with a terrifying physique.
"W-what kind of monster is that guy?"
This Ethereal was completely different from the small fry they had dealt with before. It wasn't just the size; the physical intensity was not in the same weight class.
As an Ethereal himself, Geno was even more sensitive to this gap.
Over the past year, he had already reached the intensity of a Level 3 Ethereal. But the big lug in front of him was undoubtedly countless times stronger than him—a genuine Level 4 Ethereal!
Then its identity was obvious.
"It is the true master of this Companion Hollow—the Dead End Butcher!"
The name 'Dead End Hollow' originated from the fact that this was his territory.
Nekomata finally understood why Geno kept urging her to run. This big guy wanting to finish them off would be no different than slicing mackerel on a chopping board.
"Still dazing out?! Run! What are you waiting for!"
Grabbing Nekomata's arm, he dragged her and sprinted swiftly in one direction.
And unsurprisingly, the Dead End Butcher chased after the direction the two were fleeing.
It could sense that there was a 'food ingredient' here that could make it more complete.
It might even allow it to jump straight to Level 5 in one go.
What pleased it most was that this 'ingredient' was very weak. There was simply nothing that made an Ethereal happier than this.
So, it followed unhurriedly behind Geno and Nekomata. For it, this meal was already a sure thing; it didn't mind playing a little game of hide-and-seek with its delicious delicacy.
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